Wire cutter



June 24, 1930. A. A. JOHNSON WIRE CUTTER Filed March 5, 1929 INVENTOR.fixeZ flJo'fi/rson ATTORNEY.

Patented June 24, 1930 AXEL A. JOHNSON, OF HOLLY, MICHIGAN WIRE CUTTERApplication filed March 5,1929. Serial No. 344,149.

This invention relates to improvements in wire cutters, and aims toprovide a simple and cheap form of cutter having removable cutting dieswhich are rotatable one on the other, each of which has a plurality ofperipheral recesses of different sizes. so that when the recessesin bothdies are opposite one another wire may be inserted into the pair ofrecesses of the size that it fits, and

the dies turned by movement of the handles in which they are mounted sothat the wire is severed.

I am aware that wire cutters have hitherto been manufactured whereinpivotally arranged handles were employed having their inner endsdisposed side by side and provided with peripheral recesses. In such aconstruction, however, it is virtually impossible to make the parts ofsuch material that they may be successfully employed on anything exceptquite small sized, wire, and even then their life can be only of veryshort duration. In order to stand up for prolonged periods when used forheavier wire the cutting dies must be hard and tough enough to withstanda very severe strain,

and the handles should be relatively soft.

According to the present invention the dies may be quickly and cheaplymade by quantity production methods of tool steel, or

other desired material, and hardened, and the handles may be made of adifferent material entirely.

Another object of the invention is to provide wire cutters wherein asimple stop arrangement is employed by which the opening apart of theouter ends of the handles is arrested when the die recesses are oppositeone another.

Having thus briefly stated the major objects and the advantages of theinvention, which consists in certain novel construction and combinationof parts, I will now describe it more fully with the aid of theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Figure 1 illustrates a plan View of the invention with the outer ends ofthe handles in open position, and the recesses in the dies opposite eachother.

Figure 2 is another plan view with the .when the stop 9 strikes the endof the cutouter ends of the handles in closed position,

and the recesses in the dies not-in line with each other.

Figure 3 is .a side view of Figure 1, and Figure 4 shows an enlargedview of one .55

of the dies.

Referring to the drawings, 1 and 1 designate a pair of handles havingoffset ends 2 and 2 with openings 3 and 3 respectively therethrough forthe passage of a pin 4, by which the said ends 2 and 2 are pivotallyconnected. The offset arrangement of the handles permits their outerends 1 and 1 to be relatively so positioned that they move insubstantially the same plane. Across the adjacent faces of the ends 2and2 depressions'5 and 5 are provided which terminate in shoulders 6 and6 which extend transversely across their whole width. Cutting dies 7 and7 are arranged in the depressions 5 and 5 with their adjacentsides'contiguous to one another. One straight side of each die restsagainst its'shoulder 6, or-

6, and the dies have apertures 8 and 8 therethrough through which thepin ,4 passes. In'thismanner the dies aremadeto'tur'n about the pin 4;with the handles land l and cannot turn independently ofthe latter.Projecting inwardly from the handle 1 just behind the depression 5 is astop 9 which strikes the inner end .of the cutting die 7 and limits theturning movement of the latter and its handle 1 The intermediateportions 11 and 11 of the handles 1 g and 1 are relatively so arrangedthat they'85 also meet and limit the inward movement of the outer endsof the handles towards one a another.

Around-the circumference of the cutting dies 7 and '7, whichare similarto onea-nother in all respects, a plurality of peripheral .slotslO'and10 of varying sizes are formed. The slots in the two dies are sopositioned as to be opposite one another ting die 7, and are sopositioned as to cover one another when the outerends of the handles aremoved towards one another as far asthe intermediate portions 11 and 11of the latter permit.

From the foregoing it is believed that it will be clearly seen that Ihave devised a simple and inexpensive form of wire cutter in which it iseconomical to insert cutting dies made of special material which willstand up under prolonged use. While the preferred embodiment of theinvention has been described and shown, it is understood that theconstruction is susceptible to such modifications as fall within thescope of the appended claims.

WVhat I claim as my invention and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A wire cutter comprising two handles each having an openingtherethrough towards one end, a pin extending through said openings, theends of said handles through which said pin passes having depressions intheir adjacent sides extending from their extremities beyond saidopenings, cutting dies in said depressions of at least as great athickness as the depth of the depressions so that their adjacent sidesare in contact with one another, said dies having holes therethroughthrough whichsaid pin passes, means for supporting said dies so thateach must turn with the handle against which it bears and is heldagainst independent movement, and said dies having peripheral slotsformed therein which are so positioned that the slots in one die areover the slots in the other die when the outer ends of the handles arewide apart, and cover each other when the outer ends of the handles arebrought nearer together;

2. A wire cutter comprising two handles each having an openingtherethrough towards one end, a pin through said openings,

the ends of said handles through which said pin passes havingdepressions on their adj acent sides'extending from their extremitiesbeyond-said openings, shoulders formed on said handles at the ends ofsaid depressions, cutting dies having apertures through them throughwhich said pin passes, said cutting dies being mounted in saiddepressions and having their adjacent sides contiguous with one another,each die having'one end bearing against the shoulder formed on thehandle against which it rests" so that each die turns with the handlecontiguous to it about said pin, and said dies having slots formed intheir peripheries so arranged that the slots in one die are over theslots in the other die when the outer ends of the handles are wideapart, and cover each other when the outer ends of the handles arebrought nearer to ether.

3. A w1re cutter comprising two handles each having an openingtherethrough towards one end, a pin extending through said openings, theends of the handles through which the pin passes having depressions intheir adjacent sides extending from their extremities beyond saidopenspect to the other handle and its die, and

said dies having peripheral slots formed therein, said slots being sopositioned that the slots in one die register with the slots in theother die when the outer ends of the handles are wide apart and covereach other when the outer ends of the handles are brought nearertogether.

4. A tool of the character described comprising two'handles havingopposed depressions formed in their inner sides, said depressionsextending from one extremity of the handles, a cutting die mounted ineach depression so that adjacent sides of the dies are substantially incontact with one another, said dies projecting'beyond said handles,means holding each die immovable relative its handle, said dies eachhaving an aperture therethrough, a pin extending through said aperturesso that the two dies and the two handles may be turned relative to oneanother, and said dies each having a plurality of peripheral slotsformed therein, said slots being so positioned that when the handles arein a predetermined relative position the slots in one die are inregistry with the slots in the other die.

AXEL ALFRED JOHNSON.

